Pictures of Us
by TiaKisu
Summary: Eternity has little meaning in a human life and yet he has never been as close to truly believing in the concept as he is now. - A collection of tiny shots. Unashamedly Nine/Rose. Mild spoiler warning for Journey's Beginning.
1. Forever

This is meant to become a collection of tiny one-shots – some canon-compliant, others clearly AU. Most should be fluff, even if there may be a little melancholy woven in. Updates will be random and, for the largest part, unconnected to each other (which is why this is marked as complete).

* * *

><p><strong>Forever<strong>

Inspired by: _Magic of Love_ by BrunuhVille

Time Frame: set in my _Bright are the Stars_ universe (Meta!Nine AU)

* * *

><p>There is a soft weight on his chest, something warm wrapped about it – like a shield, protecting and holding him, keeping him safe.<p>

It still feels so strange waking from dreams. A bit like walking away from a world that exists only in his mind, that comes to life for just one night – bearing memory and vision alike; past and future painted in the colours of a human heart.

He should have gotten used to them by now, he muses idly, eyes still closed - his senses reaching out tentatively and recognising a universe that is now his home.  
>But they still are all new to him. As is sleeping more often.<p>

The weight on his chest shifts and he feels soft fingers curl against his skin.

_Lemon grass and time_ – he can smell them and he breathes them in, lets the scent wash over him because he knows it belongs to _her_.  
>Outside a brilliant sun rises together with uncounted stars, gives birth to a new dawn and he cannot help but embrace it.<p>

Pale blue glistens in the light as finally he gazes down at her: at honey blonde hair and dark hazel that is watching him.

"Morning." It's a sound so gentle it almost drowns in the peaceful silence around. Her lips part and she smiles, bright as the moon, her golden timeline flaring as she moves her left hand to seek its waiting counterpart.

Needing no command or conscious thought he laces his fingers through hers, thinks he should answer with words but before he can say anything his neck already bends and he kisses the crown of her head in silent response.

There is no language either of them speaks that could tell her of what he holds within but she understands – always has in fact. Scooting upwards so that her face is nestled against his, she sighs contentedly and it is in this perfect moment that he ceases to run.

Eternity has little meaning in a human life and yet he has never been as close to truly believing in the concept as he is now.

With her in his arms it seems just within his reach and at last he can let go of all that he was, leave the darkness behind and become who she has seen him to be since the day they first met.

Beneath the sky eager birds are chasing the wind and he knows right there and then that she has always been right; that a single heart isn't quite so bad if it beats in tune with that of someone else.

His own is following hers, steadily, glows in her wake for as long as this universe will allow. And lying next to her he hopes that means _forever._


	2. One part of a whole

Thank you for the follows, the reviews and the favs! I'm glad someone out there likes the random little pictures my muse throws at me from time to time. :)  
>As an additional note: Like I told the ever amazing <strong>BlueStoneShiningWolf <strong>chapters which belong to my Bright are the Stars universe are very much tiny sneak peaks of its future and/or little things that most likely won't make it into the main work/s.

I hope you enjoy.

* * *

><p><strong>One part of a whole<strong>

Inspired by: _Homecoming_ by Thomas Bergersen

Time Frame: set in my _Bright are the Stars_ universe

* * *

><p>"Rose?" His forehead is twisted into a frown, the lines on it deepening the longer he stares at the open wardrobe.<p>

He's sure he has last seen the jumper in there - just the evening before actually. It had been right next to the green one and while he breathes with human lungs and walks on human legs his memory is still quite impressive he likes to think.  
>Also, this room is not the TARDIS - things don't just disappear only to end up somewhere else, even though sometimes he wishes they would. He has learned the hard way how tedious it can be: having to rely on early 21st century technology, and wouldn't mind a bit of his beloved ship's help. As it is though right now his best bet at finding out where his garment has gone is the young blonde who he hears brushing her hair in the bathroom to his left.<p>

"Yes, Doctor?" Her voice is slightly muffled when she acknowledges him, sounding like she is decidedly distracted – which in fact she is.

It belongs to her morning routine to turn her freshly-out-of-bed look into something decent, partly because she simply feels better that way and partly because she knows he likes it when her hair falls in soft waves instead of forming the unruly mass the pillow graces her with.  
>Nevertheless she drops the brush when he doesn't reply immediately, deciding to better check on him.<br>He _can_ be a bit lost when it comes to some things human.

The moment she is about to leave the bathroom though he finally proceeds, calling louder than is necessary. "D'you know where -"

Suddenly he turns, catching a glimpse of her as she approaches and that's when rather abruptly he falls silent.  
>"Ah," is all he manages to produce while he takes her in, his mouth slightly agape and an expression on his face that she just doesn't quite recognise.<p>

While her brows furrow slightly he considers her with an intensity that makes her feel both nervous and warm at once – pale blue travelling down from her eyes to her jawline until it rests on her chosen clothing.

_Oh, he might as well have known._

Enveloping her small frame the jumper is entirely too large for her, reaching to her thighs and hiding her hands so that but her fingertips peek out from underneath the maroon wool. The seams between torso and sleeves adorn her upper arms and she looks so incredibly fragile dressed like this that for several heartbeats he forgets breathing.

"I," his voice breaks, his lips too dry to speak. "I was lookin' for that."

Somehow he is able to convince his muscles to move his head in a vague nod towards the item in question, but he is less effective with those that reign his countenance.

For what seems like eons to him she just holds his gaze, the wheels in her clever brain turning and he knows exactly just when things fall into place for her. Maybe it's the treacherous tug at the corners of her lips, or the way the hazel of her irises starts to glimmer with comprehension.

"You wanted to wear it, yeah," she chirps, shifting her weight so that she rocks forwards on her bare feet while she begins to smile smugly. He is tempted to say 'yes' but already her tongue slips between her teeth and he finds the word desert him.

"Well, tough." Now she is doing it on purpose, shrugging deeper into the material, hugging herself like she is making a point.  
>Her face is alit with mirth and a challenge that he isn't daft enough to accept. If Rose Tyler sets her mind to something there is just no swaying her. Thus even though he can think of one way or the other to retrieve his possession he lets her have her will.<p>

"You just make sure there's no makeup stains on it," he grunts eventually, trying hard to sound vexed even when he knows he is most likely to fail at it. "I happen to like that one, y'know."

What he doesn't tell her is that together with the blue one it's his favourite in fact – something that might or might not have to do with her having chosen it for him that day her mother has made them go clothes shopping so shortly after his arrival in this world (and sometimes he still wonders why he's ever agreed to that in the first place).

As it seems though he's not the only one with a fondness for the thing.

"Wouldn't dream of ruining it."

When suddenly Rose's voice comes from right beside him he almost jumps, having zoned out just long enough as that he didn't notice her change in position. Her blonde head angled so that she can look at him she winds her arms around his waist, beaming away.

Positioned like this she is positively glowing, hugging him and effortlessly breaking through any and all of his defenses. Even the long suffering sigh he releases is everything but convincing yet somehow he cannot find it in him to truly care.

Close as she is, her scent surrounds him and blends with his own – drenching the red fabric between their skin with the overwhelming mixture until his nostrils flare to send a tingling all along his nerves.

She is practically declaring to belong to him – making it known in a way that every species with the ability to see or smell would understand, and instantly he is humbled.

"You better did." His not even half serious admonition gets swallowed by her giggle and finally he, too, allows himself to grin.

While she stands up on tiptoes to give him a peck on the cheek he resolves to just wear the green jumper today. _Nothing wrong with that anyway. _Especially not when it means their matching looks will tell the universe what he is still not entirely sure he does deserve it.

Rose Tyler chooses to be one part of a whole, doesn't bother hide it. And watching how she disentangles herself from him to disappear in the bathroom again he thinks how this is more than he could have ever asked for.


	3. Burning stars

I know it has been done before but this just wanted to be written. Maybe you will still like it though.

* * *

><p><strong>Burning stars<br>**

Inspired by: _Rule the World_ by Take That

Time Frame: early to mid NewWho Season One

* * *

><p>A thousand stars sparkle in the hazel of her eyes, a blinding sun burns brightly in the silken colour that is made of earth and warmth and whiskey.<p>

They sit at the edge of the grating, the TARDIS humming gently from behind while in front the universe revolves in all its majesty.

His ship has opened her doors wide for them, extended the atmosphere and gravity field so that they can stay between the worlds, secure - watch galaxies be born to form the future and fade to give out second chances. Swirling, shifting these fantastic structures form brittle, fleeting patterns as millennia pass by but just for once time seems insubstantial.  
>Even to the Doctor.<p>

With him next to her, Rose watches the spectacle in awe – blonde hair cascading down his shoulder and slender fingers laced through his. She holds his hand, as if afraid he might let go at any moment until unconsciously he shifts so that she can lean on him a little more. Like in reply she turns her head, just slightly, her breath a ghost across his skin and he sighs mutely for he almost has forgotten how beautiful the universe can be.

Together with this pink and yellow human, though, he finally remembers.

This ever changing entity, a cauldron of immeasurable possibilities, the home of light and hope and everything he is protecting - it lies before him and hardly has he ever felt so small.

"This is amazing." Rose's voice is very much a whisper, and- can it be she cries?

Worried, he glances down at her only to see a smile through silent tears. Air escapes her lungs in tiny sniffs, quiet but they are overwhelming because like nothing else they make him feel alive.

Gently squeezing her small hand he notes his hearts beat faster when just a second later she returns the look, studies the infinity that lies beyond a pale blue gaze before her nose is disappearing in soft wool.

She hums into his jumper, contentedly for all that he can tell. "Thank you."

Instantly he tenses, starts and asks "What for?", not bothering to even think it through.

Sometimes he is slow like that.

She simply chuckles in response, a watery sound but it is happy.  
>"Everything. For this. For showing me what's out here," she pauses, bites her lower lip while her cheeks surrender to a blush, "for putting up with me."<p>

The very second that is out he almost scoffs, fights the urge to point it out to her that if any of the two is bearing with somebody then it is clearly she who is a hero: tolerating every of his moods and his considerable temper when others would have long since given up on him.

But he can't say that just yet, coward that he has been ever since the War.

A Time Lord knows when he is changing, and he is. Inevitably, thanks to her. Even after so short a time and there are days when he is scared of that. Scared of what it means for him when in the end he will be forced to let her go. Because nothing lasts forever.

But right now, right here he doesn't want to care about what is to come - just revels in her presence and in what _she _is teaching _him_. Each and every moment.  
>He decides to let her steal a glimpse on that at least.<p>

"Anytime, Rose."

His lips quirk, the darkness in his mind grows weaker as he confesses everything with just one word, hopes that somehow she will find the hidden meaning while in front of them an infant star bursts into golden flames to shine.

If not for all eternity, then at least as long as he and she remember.

"Anytime."


	4. Shadows of the night

Thank you for the follows and the favs! I apologise in advance though because instead of light-hearted fluff this chapter is nothing but Hurt/Comfort.

* * *

><p><strong>Shadows of the night<strong>

inspired by: _River of Tears _by BrunuhVille

time frame: set in my _Bright are the Stars _universe (Meta!Nine AU), post _Journey's Beginning_

* * *

><p>She wakes up screaming. <em>His<em> name. Again and again. Not for the first time.

Her haunted cries are forlorn little things, she knows. Strangled, yet piercing in their intensity they writhe and twist whilst in her head she sees him burn.

Like a growling beast the flames rise high. They sing and hiss as they devour him greedily; the angry blaze a living creature that has no care for her or anyone. It's leaving her behind, alone and frightened.

He holds on tight while she is falling. Into nothingness, the never-ending Dark. Her hands reach out but no matter what she tries, they cannot touch him anymore. The Valiant Child is dying, right before his eyes and there is nothing she can do.

He apologises, asks for her forgiveness as he takes away the pain - a light so brilliant, so consuming, eating her alive. She knows what it will do to him and so she pleads, desperately, begs for him to stay - without words and in any language she has learned he speaks. But he is fading.

Her voice is but a mournful prayer now, tearing her away from the cruel vision.

She comes to slowly – such a painful process. Somewhere in her mind she notices her cheeks are wet, her throat is sore and hurts. She gasps.  
>Irritated muscles bend and flex her joints, her hands grasp blindly at anything that is close enough to find. For an endless second she is lost, shaking violently while inside her heart beats frantically in its cage.<br>The drum is much like rolling thunder in her veins.

Too often, too often has she walked in dreams like that; too often woken to a world in which they were the truth.  
>She is tired, broken - far beyond repair. Too far gone for any of her kin to ease the pain. Her family is beaten, helpless because without him she is lonely and it takes her breath away to know that she is living in this life. Confined to a universe that has never even known his name.<p>

But not _tonight_. Not this time.

She winces.

His arms are wrapped around her upper body. He is cradling her and it's pure instinct that she budges- burying a pallid face in his chest as if it is a haven. With his own head bowed he has tucked her golden one beneath his chin, as safely as he can. Her mind might well be tricking her, but she believes to hear him whisper.

"Just a dream, Rose. Am here. It's okay." The words are gentle on her shivering skin, his fear is silent. So unlike her own. "M here. It's alright, I'm not leavin' you."

There is a tremor in the way he speaks, a sound that she should recognise but doesn't. Still, she trusts that this is real.

He is _there_. She can feel him next to her – alive and breathing, and she holds on to that if to nothing else.

"No' again." It's a promise, rashly made but he is trembling as well and she knows he will do anything to keep his word. Tear down planets and entire suns, if he must (although sometimes that thought worries her).

Needing no command her head moves in a minute nod as she curls up against his solid frame, seeks his warmth; hides in his presence while around them time flows steadily.

She hates those dreams, genuinely hates them because once they were her past; wants to run away because somewhere deep inside she is scared that they might also be her future.  
>She is certain that at last her heart would truly shatter if she were to lose him one more time.<p>

Tonight, however, he is with her and she clings to that, stays in his embrace until her mind succumbs to sleep and her exhaustion.

He is with her – a guard and a protector – lying down so close to her she can feel him still, and somehow this is all she needs to keep the shadows of the night at bay. All that she could ask for, for tomorrow is another day. With _him_.

And that is all, she thinks, that matters.


	5. Safe and Sound

I seem to have developed a slight obsession with sleeping these days but at least this time it's all pointless fluff again.

As always, thanks for the new follows and favs! I'm glad you enjoy visiting this little playground of mine.

* * *

><p><strong>Safe and Sound<strong>

Inspired by: _ Safe And Sound _by Capital Cities

Time frame: set in my _Bright are the Stars_ universe

* * *

><p>Rose sighs contentedly as she slips into bed. This, she thinks, might well be her favourite time of day.<p>

Snuggling underneath the covers she instantly feels cosy, giggles as from behind a strong arm sneaks around her waist to pull her close.

Curling up a bit she allows him to spoon her and their bodies fit together as if they were designed to be a perfect match. Snatching the hand that has settled so nicely on her stomach she intertwines his fingers with hers, shrugs deeper into the safety of his existence before she moves her feet and tugs them neatly between his calves.

And, oh, how she loves _this_ part.

"Rassilon, Rose," he hisses, flinching ever so slightly, "the frozen caves on Women Wept are warmer than your toes. How is it even possible for you to still run around on them? Shouldn't they come fallin' off at some point?"

He grunts but accepts the icy things on his skin despite his grousing.

"As long as I got you to warm them up again, no," she chirps and tilts her head a little – just in time to see him roll his eyes in mock exasperation.

"One day I'm just gonna get you self-heating socks. Will be healthier for me anyway."

"Oi, look who's talking," scrunching her nose in a fruitless attempt to look offended, Rose huffs. "Every time you took me by the hand, could've as well been holding on to a Ben and Jerry's then but you never heard me complain, did you?"

He hums thoughtfully at that, shrugging against her back. "Was normal for me though. Time Lord, remember? Isn't my fault your lot wastes so much energy on their heating."

"You're human now, too," she reminds him teasingly, eyes sparkling in the light of the bedside lamp. "And I happen to like that waste of energy."

As if for emphasis she wriggles, pulls softly on the arm that is by now draped over her chest. His warmth is quickly becoming a cocoon for her and for a brief moment she wonders how she could ever live without this.

He snorts, but there is a laugh hiding underneath the sound while he lets himself be positioned. "Well, you would since you're the one taking advantage."

"I can always sleep in my own bed, you know." In truth, she isn't even half serious saying that. "Spare you the agony and-"

Before she can even finish the sentence he suddenly tightens his hold on her, making her squeal.

"Don't you dare, Rose Tyler." His tone is dead serious even when his smirk betrays him.

"Not that terrible then, yeah, being stuck with my icy feet?"

"Didn't say that," chin dipped, he hides his nose in her hair, the humour in his voice doing nothing to cover the honesty that follows after. "Just, I'm willing to pay the price."

As soon as this is out she smiles, aware of what suddenly lies underneath their banter and answers in kind. "My hero."

There is a second of silence between them and during that one heartbeat she sobers. Turning in his arms she looks up to him, hazel eyes wide and grateful. Studying this face she has once thought lost to time and the flames she watches as grey irises turn a pale blue under her scrutiny.

"I love you. You do know that, yeah?"

Now there is no jest anymore, no quips – just the night and her words.

He nods gently, places this most tender of kisses on her forehead in lieu of a reply and that's when she decides that, yes, this will always be her favourite time of day.


End file.
